Four guests who attended a funeral in Okemesi, Ekiti West local government area of Ekiti State have also met their untimely death after they drowned while swimming in the Osun River along Ajido, Ikoro road.
The incident occured on Sunday November 10.
According to community members, two of the dead young men traveled from Lagos to the community for a burial ceremony and wanting to have a feel of the community ambience decided to swim in the river. The other were indigenes of the community from Aworogun household.
According to the spokesperson of the Ekiti State Police Command, Sunday Abutu, the police received a distress call from members of the community and on arrival at the scene met the young men dead. He added that an investigation has commenced.
“A distress report received on 10/11/2024 has it that on the same date, a 23-year-old and a 25-year-old natives of Okemesi-Ekiti went to River Osun Ajindo/Idoile Road to swim alongside two of their friends that came from Lagos State to attend a burial ceremony which took place at Okemesi.
The four young men unfortunately drowned. Their bodies have been recovered and deposited in the morgue, while investigation is underway.” he said.
It is recalled that in April 2008, another tragedy occured in Kano when about 40 guests attending a wedding party drowned in a river after the boat they were traveling in capsized.
Most of the victims were women numbering 22 and children numbering 15 who were accompanying the bride from Bagwai district to the remote village of Badau.
The victims were the second batch of guests the boat ferried across the river with only one survivor, Habiba Bagwai.
“I lost three of my children, Abdullahi 17 months, Aisha four years and Ishaku six years,” Bagwai had said.